Sant'Apollonia was a former

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

convent, founded in 1339, north of the center of

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

, in Italy. Some of the remaining structures are demarcated on three sides by Via Ventisette Aprile, Via Santa Reparata, and Via San Gallo, located about a block west of

Piazza San Marco Piazza San Marco (; ), often known in English as St Mark's Square, is the principal Town Square, public square of Venice, Italy, where it is generally known just as ''la Piazza'' ("the Square"). The Piazzetta ("little Piazza/Square") is an ext ...

, just north of the city center. The structures of the convent, suppressed since the 19th century, are now put to different uses. The small church building is still present on the corner of Via Ventisette Aprile and San Gallo.

''Museo di Cenacolo di Sant'Apollonia''

The best known component is the former refectory or dining hall of the convent, the ''Cenacolo of Sant'Apollonia'' now part of the Museums of the Commune of Florence, with entrance through an undistinguished door near the corner of Via Ventisette Aprile and Reparata. The refectory harbors the well-conserved fresco, '' The Last Supper'', by the

Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( ) was a period in History of Italy, Italian history between the 14th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Western Europe and marked t ...

artist

Andrea del Castagno Andrea del Castagno () or Andrea di Bartolo di Bargilla (; – 19 August 1457) was an Italian Renaissance painting, Italian Renaissance painter in Florence, influenced chiefly by Masaccio and Giotto, Giotto di Bondone. His works include fresc ...

, along with the same artist's '' The Dead Christ Supported by Two Angels'', originally above a door in the convent. The small museum also displays other fresco designs and works by Castagno,

Neri di Bicci Neri di Bicci (1419–1491) was an Italian painter active in his native Florence. A prolific painter of mainly religious themes, he studied under his father, Bicci di Lorenzo, who had in turn studied under his father, Lorenzo di Bicci. The three ...

, Paolo Schiavo, and Raffaello da Montelupo.Polo Museale Fiorentino
, (Museums of the City of Florence) run by the Soprintendenza Speciale per il Patrimonio Storico, Artistico ed Etnoantropologico e per il Polo Museale della città di Firenze, entry on the ''Refectory Museum''.

References

External links

Former churches in Florence 15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy 1339 establishments in Europe 14th-century establishments in the Republic of Florence National museums of Italy {{Italy-struct-stub